


Reunited

by Hessy



Series: The Ranger Mishaps [2]
Category: Ranger's Apprentice - John Flanagan
Genre: Gen, Kind of AU?, RA Fanfic Challenge, RA Fanfic Challenge #2, Reunion, pre-Ruins of Gorlan, set after Gilan's graduation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-28
Updated: 2020-03-28
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:40:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23362603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hessy/pseuds/Hessy
Summary: Halt is called to castle Araluen due to urgent business, but is he willing to risk his new life in Araluen over a simple meeting?
Relationships: Caitlyn O'Carrick & Halt O'Carrick
Series: The Ranger Mishaps [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1696990
Comments: 7
Kudos: 36
Collections: RA Fanfiction Challenge #2





	Reunited

**Author's Note:**

> An entry for the RA Fanfic Challenge #2.

As a King's Ranger and one of Duncan's closest advisors Halt sometimes had to leave his fief and the people there to fend for themselves for a few days and go to Castle Araluen. Usually, he would participate in some boring meetings along with Crowley who was kicking him under the table all the time. When the diplomats left, he'd usually step on Crowley's feet to get revenge for being patient and not killing anyone while that red-headed demon was kicking him. 

Halt was sitting in his cabin, sipping his coffee. There was a jar of honey on the table. An optimist would say it was half-full, a pessimist would argue that it was half-empty. Either way, Halt was planning on going to replenish his supplies soon. Nothing was worse than coffee without honey, and even worse when you forgot to buy more of your favourite sugary treat. 

The Redmont fief had been quiet the last few days. Halt had a full stash of documents that needed to be filled in, especially the report on Battleschool that’s been haunting him for days now but Halt couldn't bring himself to do it. 

He missed Gilan. During those five years the boy lived with him, he watched him grow from a skinny boy to a lanky young adult, and now he was on his own, became a proper Ranger with a fief of his own and suddenly, Halt's cabin went quiet. There was no more noise from Gilan cleaning the floor, no whinnies coming from the stable; it was just him and Abelard now. Halt had a hard time adjusting to his former lifestyle. He missed Gilan's never-ending questions. Abelard made a fine company but Halt needed some action to take his mind off of how lonely he was. 

As he re-filled his mug and put a spoonful of honey in, he heard Abelard's neighing. Halt was on guard immediately. The visitor was walking; there was no jarring breathing or thumps of footsteps that indicated running. So that was no villager coming to ask for help. But that didn’t mean it was an imminent danger. Halt’s hand touched the Saxe knife he kept at his side; it was better to be prepared. 

He didn’t startle when someone knocked on his door a few moments later. Halt left his half-finished mug on the table and stood up to open the door for the mysterious visitor. There was a man in the courier robe. He didn’t have a horse with him, so he must’ve come down here from Castle Redmont. 

“I have a message for Ranger Halt,” the courier said, handing a neatly folded parchment. On the front, there was a seal in which he could see an outline of an oak leaf. A message from Crowley, then. Halt took the paper with a grumbled: “Thank you.” The courier bowed his head slightly and turned around, going back to the castle. 

Halt closed the door and went back to his mug of coffee. With no annoying apprentice to pester him about it, he put his feet on the table. If he had any mind to do it, he’d scold himself, but Halt was his own master and didn’t bother doing it. He broke the seal and read the message. 

_Dear Halt,_

_your presence will be needed at Castle Araluen on the second day of next month. You can bring your reports with you when you come._

_Crowley_

Halt wasn’t fooled by this friendly-sounding letter. This was definitely an order. Crowley always disguised orders as friendly letters, but everyone knew that his messages weren’t to be ignored. Only one recently graduated Ranger tried that. Halt smiled mischievously. What happened to that poor soul at the following Gathering always managed to get a faint smile on his face. 

Halt reached the bottom of his mug and put the cup on the table. He had a whole week before he had to be at Castle Araluen, but he had to leave Redmont at least four days before the day his presence was needed in the Araluen fief. 

Halt sighed. He’d better start on those reports real fast. 

A few days later Halt washed his morning cup of coffee, put his jar, now full of honey again, in the cupboard and got his equipment ready. 

Abelard’s head was curiously looking out of the stall. _To Crowley again?_ the horse shook his head. 

Halt started brushing him. “You know how it is,” he grumbled seemingly to no one, but the horse’s ears moved back; Abelard was listening. 

_Maybe this time Cropper will have some apples to share_ , Abelard licked his lips; a clear sign of relaxation. Halt lightly smacked him on the neck and continued brushing him. 

“Cropper is an old greedy horse just like Crowley,” Halt murmured under his breath, loudly enough for the sensitive horse ears to pick it up. “Always keeps the best chicken parts for himself.” 

Abelard snorted. _Maybe if you didn’t give him a reason to provoke you every time you grumble about that…_ He left the sentence in the air. Halt grabbed the saddle pad and threw it over Abelard’s back. Whenever Crowley asked if Halt wanted the tastiest part of their meal, Halt would always say yes, like the fool he was. 

“That’s it, no apples for you,” he adjusted the saddle pad and went for the saddle. Abelard nickered. 

_Then it’s a good thing Crowley supplies me with apples every time we go see him_. His owner put the saddle over his back and reached under the horse’s belly for the girth. 

“I’ll tell him to not give you anything,” he breathed out, then tightened the girth lightly. In their first few weeks together, Abelard tried funny horse tricks on Halt, however, he quickly found out that he couldn’t fool his rider and stopped doing them. 

_The Princess will surely give me some_ , Abelard let Halt put on a bridle. Now, the grim Ranger understood that he never even stood a chance arguing with his horse, and left it at that. If the young Crown Princess wanted to give Abelard apples, he wasn’t going to stop her (only if she gave him too much. Abelard would get fat like almost every other horse in the royal stable). After all, he liked the young girl, and Cassandra was looking forward to Halt’s occasional visits. 

Halt didn’t even grab Abelard’s reins and the grey horse followed him to the cabin’s door where he waited patiently until Halt got his camping equipment and an extra quiver full of arrows and fastened them at the saddle. He then tightened the girth, put his longbow over the saddle horn, put his foot in the stirrup and swung into the saddle. Halt put the other foot into the stirrup on the other side and patted Abelard’s neck, rewarding him for his patience. He grasped the reins and they set off to Castle Araluen. 

Halt let Abelard trot and they stopped every four hours for a quick break and a snack. Abelard enjoyed these little breaks as he sought out the greenest patch of grass everywhere they stopped and started grazing. Halt let him graze for half an hour, then they continued on their journey. After all, Halt had a sack of oat from which he would give Abelard a portion every evening. The horse deserved a reward to properly replenish his energy.

They kept their leisurely rhythm and arrived at Castle Araluen on the fourth day. He proved his identity as a King Ranger to the guards and Abelard walked into the courtyard. A few horses were standing near the stable, their heads low, each one eating hay. A stable boy walked quickly over to where Halt got off of Abelard. 

“Do you want me to take care of your horse, Mr. Ranger?” he asked nervously, shifting his gaze from Halt to his feet. 

“No, I’ll do it myself. Show me a free stall,” Halt ordered him and the boy turned around and almost ran to the stable. Poor thing; he must’ve been new and scared out of his wits, seeing a Ranger, and such a grim one on the top of that! 

There was a rare vacant stall next to Cropper. There were always some free stalls, but usually, they were scattered throughout the whole stable. The two horses neighed a greeting to each other. Halt removed Abelard’s bridle and the two horses immediately touched noses, moving their ears back and forth. There was some white fur starting to show around Cropper’s brown nose and eyes; he was starting to get old. The horse was in active service for almost seventeen years now and it was high time to think about getting a new horse; at least for Crowley. Halt still had a few years with his loyal Abelard to come. Crowley probably had too much work to go visit Old Bob. 

Halt fetched a bucket and filled it with oats. He put it in Abelard’s stall and left to make his presence known to Crowley and the King. 

When Halt knocked on the door leading to Crowley’s study, the Ranger Commandant was once again slaving over unfinished paperwork. By now, Halt knew Crowley’s antics fairly well; he’d always wait with filling in paperwork up until the last moment possible and then complain all day and night if there was someone to hear him (he did that even when there wasn’t anyone to pat him on the back, saying how evil the paperwork was, but he was a lot less dramatic). 

Crowley looked up from his work. “Good thing you’re here, Halt. I was starting to think you got lost.” At that exact moment, Halt turned around and stepped back into the corridor, closing the door behind him. He heard a sound of Crowley’s rush of curse words when he crashed into the sharp corner of the table in his rush to get to the door. 

Crowley caught up to him when he was on the staircase. He slowed his pace to match Halt’s. 

“How have you been?” he asked. Even though they were best friends, they went a lot of time without any communication, save for the necessary reports. It had been more than half a year since Halt last saw Crowley. 

“Better when you weren’t there,” he replied, watching with quiet amusement as Crowley stopped, exclaiming: “How can you just hurt my feelings like that?” 

Halt continued on his way to King Duncan’s office. Crowley once again caught up to him. 

“During the last Gathering, you made it clear you’re on babysitting duty. Where’s Cassandra?” Halt said, clearly prepared to torment his friend. They went down the stairs and were now almost at the King’s study. 

Crowley waved his hand with uncertainty. “That little devil? She has a lesson on how to be a proper lady.” 

Halt raised his eyebrows. He had never heard Crowley talk about the young Princess in this way. The red-haired Ranger looked at him, his lips pressed into a thin line. 

“She started practicing with a sling. A nightmare to the guards, I tell you,” he explained. “They keep me from other work, always nagging me that there’s a ghost in here. Why can’t they go pester Berwick or Egon? They’re pretty bored now that they’ve retired.” 

Halt shrugged. “If they’re this bored, they could help you with paperwork,” he suggested, but Crowley was already vehemently shaking his head. 

“They’re the ones teaching this to Cassandra,” he whispered. No one else in the whole Castle probably knew. “They’ve been teaching her horse riding, too. They could at least help out with this whole mess with the guards.” 

Halt grinned. “But that’s YOUR job,” he pointed out. “YOU’RE the active Ranger here.” 

Crowley gave him a pointed look. Halt always had to point out the fact that Egon and Berwick were retired Rangers. When the Ranger Commandant was away, they did share his duties in the fief, but once Crowley set one foot back on the Castle grounds, it was over. They liked to slowly torture him like that. 

They stopped and Halt knocked on a massive oak door. Lord Anthony, the King’s Chamberlain, opened the door and invited them in, announcing their arrival to the King. 

The two Rangers went inside. Duncan was sitting behind a table. Actually, his whole study looked a lot like Crowley’s, there were stacks of papers everywhere and the King himself seemed to be very tired like he hadn’t slept for a few nights. 

“Your Majesty,” both Halt and Crowley chorused, standing at the door. Duncan looked up. 

“Halt, Crowley. Take a seat, please. Do you want coffee?” 

After a few minutes when they waited for their coffees (and tea for Duncan) to be delivered to the study, they sat in silence. Halt knew that they would soon tell him why he was needed here and waited patiently. That was, after all, a fundamental ability for a good Ranger. 

When a servant brought their beverages and set them on the table, King Duncan finally spoke: “You might be wondering why I have called you here so suddenly, Halt.” 

The raven-haired Ranger shrugged. He didn’t say anything, just waited for the King to continue. 

“There’s a Hibernian diplomat coming tomorrow,” the King started explaining. “Or, more precisely, a Hibernian Princess.” That caught Halt’s attention. There weren’t many princesses in Hibernia, was it possible he meant…? 

Crowley patted Halt on the back. “We needed a translator, and I thought with you as a native Hibernian, you could take the mantle.” 

Halt sipped from his coffee and put the mug down. 

“What happened to your usual translator, Your Majesty? Surely he could be available, no?” 

King Duncan shook his head with a sad expression. 

“Sadly, he’s got a nasty illness and the others are on other missions. You were the only logical choice, Halt.” The Ranger raised his eyebrow. 

“And the Princess doesn’t have anyone available?” he asked. He knew for a fact that there were many skilled interpreters who knew various world languages in Dun Kilty. Some of them have even taught Halt himself the basics of quite a few languages. 

King Duncan was already shaking his head by the time Halt finished his question. “Unfortunately, it seems that there’s also some illness going around in Hibernia,” he explained. “The Princess is the only one with adequate diplomatic training who is still healthy enough to come.” Halt grumbled something incomprehensible. It sounded a whole lot like: “So we’ll get sick, too?” 

In his heart, Halt was properly terrified. If Caitlyn was coming here, there was no doubt that she’d recognize him. Even though it’s been almost a decade since he ran away from home, he was still Ferris’ twin and Caitlyn could easily recognize him, even with the beard. Of course, on the outside, no one could see his inner turmoil. No one could see the panic in his eyes. Crowley, maybe, noticed that he stiffened for a bit there. The redhead put his hand on Halt’s thigh. 

“We need you, Halt. Just this once.”

The Redmont Ranger swallowed and nodded. He would get through this, even if Caitlyn recognized him; Ferris had no power here in Araluen and couldn’t do anything to him (except hiring some skilled assassins to kill him, but Halt tried to not think about that).

When they left the King’s office, Halt was silent. That is, more silent than usual and considerably grumpier. Even though he so desperately wanted to catch up with Crowley, he left him to his work in search of Berwick and Egon.

He found the two retired Rangers in one of the Castle’s many gardens, drinking coffee. The young Princess was with them, her blonde hair done up in a bun and she was wearing a cute red dress. The seven-year-old was telling the Rangers how much she appreciated the lessons they were giving her. Halt listened for a bit. It seemed that Cassandra was tired of having to act like a proper lady all the time. 

Halt decided that he’s eavesdropped enough after a minute or two and came out to the open. Three heads turned to him, with three different exclamations: “Halt!” 

The grim Ranger bowed his head slightly to both retired colleagues, greeting them. Then he bowed to the Princess. 

Cassandra was never afraid of him. Maybe it was due to the fact that she was royalty, the nobles knew about the Rangers’ role in the society and tended to not be afraid of them, maybe partly because she grew up around Crowley and must’ve heard so many embarrassing stories about him that Halt didn’t even want to know. 

Either way, later, when all of them were sipping their beverages, the Rangers had their beloved coffee and Cassandra was drinking an apple juice, Halt couldn’t help but sympathize with the young Princess. She tended to not like her lessons. She wanted to be free, much like Halt so many years ago. But, she was also mature enough to recognize that there was no other possible heir and that she’d cause her Father so much sadness if she refused to be the Crown Princess. 

They spent a pleasant afternoon in the gardens, catching up and talking about various things. Halt was never a talkative person, so most of the chattering was done by Berwick and Egon, who were happy to share the news. Cassandra found a comfy place in Halt’s lap, leaning against his torso. Halt let the child be; he was reluctantly telling the two retired Rangers about the events that happened in his fief, like the cases of arson all over Redmont fief (but Halt had no problem tracking down the culprit and getting him a one-way ticket to the dungeon), an occasional Skandian raid or cattle getting lost. They chatted long into the evening and it was only after the servants started looking for the Princess that they got up and made their way to the castle, with Cassandra hopping around like a hyperactive bunny. 

The next morning, a small welcome party left the castle. Halt, Crowley, King Duncan, Lord Anthony, and a dozen guards saddled their horses and left to a small harbour on the Semath River. Even though Cassandra begged to go, Duncan left her in the care of her nannies (the young Princess pouted and left to her room to sulk). 

Halt was watching the world from the deep shadow of his cowl. He was the only one in the group whose face wasn’t visible. Naturally, that attracted some weird looks, but Halt was ignoring the low whispering of the guards. 

They dismounted their horses and waited quietly along the shore. They didn’t have to wait long; before their departure from Castle Araluen, a messenger arrived. They had seen the royal ship at the fief’s border. 

Everyone gasped when the ship rounded the last bend of the river and came into view. Halt sucked in a breath. This very meeting could change his life forever if Caitlyn recognized him and decided to tell their parents. 

“This is my first meeting with a royal who’s not from Araluen, what about you?” Crowley nudged him in the ribs. He seemed quite excited about it. The royals themselves never seemed to come to their beautiful country; they always sent diplomatic envoys. Halt refused to answer. He had actually met a lot of royals in his life, but he didn’t think it important. Quite a few of them were just a bunch of wine-lovers who let the officials in their countries do the most important decisions. 

The ship docked and they could make out the silhouette of the Princess. King Duncan motioned to Halt and Crowley to follow him and Lord Anthony, so the four of them walked a little closer to be the first people to greet the Princess. 

"Halt, maybe you should lower your hood," Duncan suggested. The underlying tone was making it clear that this was an order. Halt complied after a few seconds. His gaze wandered over the ship. 

Caitlyn was just as beautiful as he remembered her to be, if not more. She grew out her dark brown hair so it reached her shoulder blades. She had her hair done in a braid. Her hazelnut eyes looked over the Araluen welcome party, momentarily stopping to look at Halt. If she already had any suspicion, she didn't let it show. Instead, she straightened the skirt of her maroon dress and stepped onto the quay. 

Kind Duncan took a step forward. "Welcome to Araluen, princess Caitlyn," he said. "I am Duncan; this is my Chamberlain, lord Anthony of Spa, and my advisors, Rangers Crowley and Halt." He made it a point to speak slowly so that the Princess could understand. He wasn't sure how well she knew the common language. 

All the men present slightly bowed their heads to show respect. Halt remained in that position a bit longer than the others, trying to hide his face for as long as possible. 

King Duncan continued: "Ranger Halt will serve as an interpreter for our meetings. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask him." 

Caitlyn curtsied. “Thank you for your warm welcome,” she said, her Hibernian accent very detectable. She sneaked a few curious glances at Halt. The Ranger kept his gaze in front of him, not looking at her. 

She was offered a horse. It was barely taller than Abelard. The Princess didn’t mind an absolute lack of a carriage, she loved horses. _She always did_ , Halt thought when Caitlyn mounted the horse and they set off back to Castle Araluen. 

“My brother didn’t want to let me go here, but he fell ill too, so I was the only one who could go,” Caitlyn told them when they neared the castle. Duncan looked at Halt, waiting for him to translate. He didn’t catch the whole middle part. Caitlyn’s accent was so thick that almost everyone around had a problem understanding her, but not Halt. After years of living in Araluen, his own accent was almost gone, but he understood perfectly every word. After all, he grew up with this young graceful lady. He’d recognize her voice anywhere. 

So, he interpreted the sentence to the king, his deep voice attracting more of Caitlyn’s glances. He was quite sure that she knew who he truly was by now, and frankly, he didn’t mind. The prospect of talking with his sister again, without any disguise, was amazing. He caught himself thinking that he wouldn’t mind even if she told everyone home. 

Once at the castle, they left the horses in the skilled hands of the stable boys and showed Caitlyn to her chambers. The Princess looked over nicely furnished room. She opened her mouth to say something, but she wasn’t given the chance to do so. A high-pitched cry of: “Daddy! You’re back!” resonated through the corridor. Cassandra came running in like a racehorse, immediately trying to cling to Duncan’s leg. 

“They’re making me arrange flowers again!” the child complained, pouting adorably. Duncan reached out his hand and patted her on her hair. The king turned to Caitlyn. 

“Please excuse my daughter’s behaviour,” he said. “She is quite young.” Then he whispered to his only child: “Be polite and introduce yourself.” 

Caitlyn smiled at her as Cassandra introduced herself. She also asked if they could do each other’s hair. The Hibernian Princess crouched low to be on the child’s eye level. 

“Maybe tomorrow. Today, I need to prepare for a meeting,” she said, taking care to pronounce every word very carefully. Cassandra nodded enthusiastically (no one ever knew if she reacted to the friendly tone of Caitlyn’s voice or if she actually understood). 

The men turned to take their leave and to let Caitlyn get comfortable when she spoke up. 

“Can Ranger Halt stay here? I’ll need some help,” she asked. Crowley looked at Halt, who shrugged and walked back into the room. He closed the door behind him. 

As soon as that happened, Caitlyn walked up to him. 

“Halt? Is that really you?” she asked, uncertainty evident in her voice. Halt mustered up a small smile. 

“Hey, Caitlyn,” he said and the woman jumped around his neck, shoving her head into his shoulder. 

“You’re alive!” she cried happily and tightened her hold. Halt embraced her back. He felt the fabric of his shirt dampen; Caitlyn was crying. He immediately squished her harder. Oh God, how had he missed her! Back when he was still living in Dun Kilty, Caitlyn was the only source of light in his life, and he missed her terribly when he left. Halt wouldn’t admit it, but he felt incredibly guilty that he didn’t leave her any explanation, just letting her think he was really dead, mourn him, only to find him years later in another country, completely unscratched and very much alive. 

Caitlyn’s shoulders shook lightly as she cried on his shoulder and Halt too felt a wet drop fall from his eyes and into his beard. He raised his hand to wipe the lone tear away, only to find out that there were more. He let his hand fall to his side while he maintained a secure hold on Caitlyn with the other. 

Minutes later, his sister, his dear sister, pulled away and grasped both his shoulders. Her face was red from crying, tears still flowing down her face, but she was smiling. 

“At home, we heard some rumours,” she laughed. “That in Araluen, there was a legend called Halt. The man they spoke of was seven feet tall.” She fell silent while she wiped her tears with the back of her hand. 

“I always found your death quite unfortunate. Then Declan was gone, but when I heard those rumours, I thought that it couldn’t be you, you were too small to be him!” She laughed some more. Halt didn’t know if he should laugh with her or be offended that she didn’t think of him as a seven feet tall legend, but he decided for the former. 

Halt allowed himself to be the boy he was all those years ago. The two siblings laughed quietly, finally reunited after years of separation. It was a great feeling and warmed both their hearts. 

Hours later, they sat on armchairs, chatting about what all happened since Halt left. Ferris was the King of Clonmel now; their father died four years ago, their mother passed away two years later. Halt talked about being a Ranger. 

Caitlyn took his hand when he was telling her about the years he spent teaching Gilan. 

“Are you happy here?” she asked. There were tears in her eyes again, threatening to fall. Halt closed his eyes and nodded. 

“I’ll have to ask you to not tell anyone about me,” he said, his tone becoming serious, a shadow looming over his face. Caitlyn looked at their hands sadly. 

“I won’t tell a soul,” she promised. “It’ll be our secret.” She could see the relief in his eyes. She tightened her grip on his hand and smiled encouragingly. No one will ever know about Halt. She wouldn’t tell anyone. If Halt wanted to come and reveal his true identity, then she would, but until then, she wouldn’t say a word to anyone, ever. 

The two siblings stayed awake well into the night, catching up. Apart from some exceptions, like Cassandra and Caitlyn braiding each other’s hair, they stayed together, talking about various topics (but only if it didn’t include Ferris). Caitlyn also got to hear the full story about how her brother who was now unrightfully the king tried to kill his own brother. Once again, she promised to not tell anyone about Halt, fearing the consequences of such action. 

Saying goodbye was one of the hardest things Halt had ever done. No army of wargals could match this, letting Caitlyn go. However, she knew that her brother was alive and well and from that time on, Caitlyn always tried to come to Araluen on diplomatic missions, and every single time she asked for Halt to be the interpreter. It didn’t matter if there were other people available, she always asked specifically for Halt. And the Ranger always happily accepted. 


End file.
